This week, the family of Gabby Petito announced that they plan to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the police department in Moab, Utah, where Petito and her boyfriend Brian Laundrie were questioned last year about a possible domestic dispute. According to news sources, shortly after Petito and Laundrie were questioned by police on Aug. 12, 2021, Petito, 22, went missing.

Petito’s body was discovered last September in the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming. Laundrie, who was later found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in North Port, Florida, wrote in a notebook that he killed her, according to the FBI. In a press release announcing the lawsuit, an attorney for the Petito family, Brian Stewart, said officers from the Moab City Police Department “failed to properly investigate the reported domestic assault, and thus failed to fully appreciate or respond to Gabby’s life-threatening situation.”

“While the full evidence has not yet been made public, when it is released, it will clearly show that if the officers had been properly trained and followed the law, Gabby would still be alive today,” James McConkie, another of the family’s attorneys, said in the press release. “Failure to follow the law can have deadly consequences, as it did in this case.”

According to sources, body camera images from the Aug. 12 incident show Petito and Laundrie talking to an officer after her 2012 Ford Transit was pulled over by Moab police. In one image, she appears to be crying while sitting in the back of a police vehicle.

In a statement at the time, Moab police said that “insufficient evidence existed to justify criminal charges” in that incident.

Officials confirmed on Sept. 21 that a body found in the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming was Petito. A coroner later ruled that she had died of “blunt-force injuries to the head and neck, with manual strangulation.”

Shortly after Petito’s body was found, the city of Moab announced it would launch an independent investigation into its police department’s handling of the incident involving Petito and Laundrie.

In January, the independent report said it found police made “several unintentional mistakes” responding to the incident, including not issuing a domestic violence citation to Petito after she claimed she hit her boyfriend first, and not taking a statement from a 911 caller who had reported seeing a man slapping a girl, according to the Associated Press.

“Would Gabby be alive today if this case was handled differently? That is an impossible question to answer despite it being the answer many people want to know,” Capt. Brandon Ratcliffe, the Price, Utah, police officer who led the investigation, wrote in the report. “Nobody knows and nobody will ever know the answer to that question.”

In this case, could a better investigation have prevented Petito’s death? Hard to say. But as we often see, investigations done well can lead to BIG victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. We know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

Know Even More: READ THE ARTICLE

 

According to multiple news sources, an investigation by law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has uncovered nearly a dozen previously undisclosed instances in which students said University of Pennsylvania law professor Amy Wax made racist, sexist or homophobic comments in class, according to a letter from law dean Theodore Ruger.

Ruger asked the university’s faculty senate to review Wax’s conduct and impose a “major sanction” against her, which could result in her suspension or firing. The recommendation follows two separate investigations of Wax initiated by the law school and years of complaints from students and alumni about Wax’s public statements demeaning minority law students, immigrants and other racial groups, Ruger said in the June 23 letter.

“Wax’s conduct inflicts harm on [students and faculty] and the institution, and undermines the University’s core values,” Ruger told the faculty senate. The letter was posted online last week by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression(FIRE), a free-speech group that has argued that Wax’s statements are protected by academic freedom.

Ruger announced in January that he would seek sanctions against Wax following her latest inflammatory public statements on race and immigration, which appeared on the website for Brown University social sciences professor Glenn Loury’s podcast.

“As long as most Asians support Democrats and help to advance their positions, I think the United States is better off with fewer Asians and less Asian immigration,” Wax wrote.

In a January YouTube interview with a Canadian professor, Wax called herself a “casualty in the culture wars.”

“What I see being said and done with respect to me is truly alarming,” Wax said. “It is a total repudiation of the very concept of academic freedom.”

The law school previously engaged former Northwestern law dean Daniel Rodriguez to investigate charges levied against Wax by a group of law school alumni. This year it retained Quinn Emanuel to interview students, alumni and faculty who had come forward to support the school’s complaint against Wax, Ruger’s letter said.

According to the 12-page letter, students told investigators that Wax said Black students do not perform as well as white students because affirmative action left them less prepared, and said in class that Mexican men are more likely to assault women. Wax also invited a white supremacist to deliver a mandatory lecture to her class, the letter said.

So does a professor have the academic freedom to say anything in class? Or is Wax as she says, a casualty in culture wars?

One thing’s for sure, the investigations were very important to build any sort of a case here. And as we often see, investigations like this one can lead to BIG victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements.

We know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

Know Even More: READ THE ARTICLE

According to news sources, some wealthy executives, sports stars and Hollywood celebrities are increasingly turning to lawyers to help them battle “sextortion” plots in which young women with whom they’ve had sex blackmail them for tens of thousands of dollars in exchange for their silence.

“There’s been a significant increase over the last 20 years, but in the last five or six years it seems to have exploded,” says celebrity lawyer Blair Berk of the Los Angeles-based firm Tarlow & Berk, PC.

“Typically it’s clear there’s been no wrongdoing [by the man with money]. “It’s a clear red flag when part of the extortion is the threat to go to law enforcement, but they say they’ve chosen not to.”

The article goes on to say that Jeremy Saland, a former Manhattan prosecutor, told Insider that he recently represented a young New York-based CEO who recently met a woman on the “sugar-daddy” site Seeking Arrangements. The CEO had spent some $40,000 showering the young woman, who assured him that she was of legal age when they met, with gifts.

After they broke up, however, she revealed that she was, in fact, under age and threatened to name the man on her social media accounts.

“I’m going to blow up you and your business,” she texted him.

The young woman threatened to go public unless the CEO, who didn’t even know the woman’s real name, paid up.

“If you can’t get me money, I’m going to f–k up your whole company,” the woman texted him.

“It’s always the same thing: ‘Pay me, or I’m going to blow up you, or your marriage, or your business’,” Saland said.

He added: “It’s always, always a crime.”

Now the plot thickens as the investigations part comes in. The story continues that the CEO paid Saland and his partner, private investigator and ex-NYPD detective Herman Weisberg, tens of thousands of dollars to gather information on the woman and “turn the tables” by surveilling her, gathering incriminating evidence and issuing a cease-and-desist letter.

Saland and Weisberg discovered that the young woman was suffering from drug addiction and was living with a man she called her “manager.” They threatened to call the police on her and the “manager,” which prompted them to back down from their “sextortion” plot.

Shawn Holley, a Los Angeles-based lawyer at the firm Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump Holley LLP, said that her clients are often asked to pony up seven-figure payouts.

“These are cases where I send my investigator out, and the accusation is not real — it’s a shakedown,” Holley, whose clientele includes the likes of Kim Kardashian, Lindsey Lohan, and Snoop Dogg, told Insider.

She said the best-case scenario is to negotiate an out-of-court settlement in the low five-figures.

Here we see business/personal interests and legal matters intersecting and sometimes going to court. And as we often see, investigations in cases like these can lead to BIG victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. We know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

Know Even More: READ THE ARTICLE

From time to time, all companies get a little behind in their work. Papers stack up, calls aren’t returned and customers have to wait. But a recent investigation into an Indiana funeral home shows what happens when the world’s second oldest profession neglects to stay on top of things.

According to news sources, Randy Lankford, owner of Lankford Family Funeral Home, spoke publicly after the investigation that produced 31 bodies and the cremated remains of 16 people. He was in Clark Superior Court No. 6 for an emergency hearing on evidence preservation related to a class action lawsuit families of the deceased have filed in civil court.

During the hearing, the court ordered Lankford to preserve a copy of his commercial lease and any records related to his business that he has now, or gets possession of later. Any records at his business from 2021 to the present also must be preserved. Lankford was ordered to not delete any emails related to matters from 2021 to the present. He was ordered to download Facebook accounts for himself, the business and his wife onto a flash drive to deliver to the court. He was also ordered to present the court banking statements from personal and private accounts.

The judge ordered Lankford to preserve his username and password from the software system he used at the funeral home. He’s also been ordered to preserve business insurance and policies and gave the court a copy of his communication with Travelers Insurance giving notice of the lawsuit against him.

“I am not allowed on the premises, according to detectives,” Lankford said in court. “You’ve seen on the news reports — they boarded up the doors and entrances.”

Lankford said there was one other employee who worked with him at the funeral home. He said this person was, “in a romantic relationship with me as well.” Lankford said that the relationship has been terminated.

Attorney Larry Wilder, representing some of the families, said what was heard in court Tuesday shows Lankford claims he has the insurance that could provide some of these families compensation for their losses, adding that nothing will ever make up for what they’ve been through.

“The idea this man is in that building doing the things he was doing, disgracing and disregarding what is just common decency with remains in that building. And carrying on like he was on ‘The Bachelor,’ I think that’s just another piece of the pie that makes you go, ‘Oh my God.”

And it all comes from detailed investigation work. As we often see, investigations can lead to BIG victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. And we know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of What is the The New Role of a Private Investigator? who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

Know Even More: READ THE ARTICLE

Investigations turn up the most curious things sometimes. According to news sources, a new leak of more than 100,000 records shows that ride hailing giant Uber used stealth technology to ward off regulators and lobbied political leaders around the world to help the startup undermine worker rights, avoid taxes and expand its global footprint.
The bombshell Uber Files investigation is based on a trove of texts, emails, invoices and other confidential documents from 2013-2017 that were leaked to The Guardian newspaper by an anonymous source. The Guardian then shared the documents with the nonprofit International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a network of Washington, D.C.-based journalists and other media partners which led the investigation with the Guardian.
Here a few takeaways from the probe:
  1. Former CEO was encouraged by 2011 violence in Paris
  2. Uber avoided paying millions of dollars in tax by channeling money through Bermuda and other tax havens, according to the Uber Files.
  3. After Uber drivers in South Africa were given permission to accept cash, gangs started hailing rides to rob drivers.
In a statement to the Guardian, Uber said it made “mistakes and missteps,” but argued the company changed since 2017 after Dara Khosrowshahi came on as CEO.
“Five years ago, those mistakes culminated in one of the most infamous reckonings in the history of corporate America. That reckoning led to an enormous amount of public scrutiny, a number of high-profile lawsuits, multiple government investigations, and the termination of several senior executives,” the statement said.
“We have not and will not make excuses for past behavior that is clearly not in line with our present values,” it said. “Instead, we ask the public to judge us by what we’ve done over the last five years and what we will do in the years to come.”
Lots of interesting information is coming to light through the Guardian and its ongoing investigation efforts. But as we often see, investigations can lead to to BIG victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. And we know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

There are so many great ways to use private investigators. This story isn’t one of them. According to news sources, an Airbnb guest said they received “threatening” messages from their host after leaving a four-star review.

Dr. Alex Moore, an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia, posted a screenshot of the messages on Twitter last week in the hopes that Airbnb would remove the host from its website.

Interestingly enough, Moore said they “really enjoyed” their stay at the host’s property—so much so that they gave the host a four-star review.

“Really enjoyed my time here and would certainly stay again if I found myself in Vancouver for a few short days,” read Moore’s review.

Though positive, the review ultimately brought the host’s overall rating down “from a 5 to a 4.95,” prompting the host to send threatening texts.

“I have your picture, your name and your number. You have 48 hours to remove your review or I’m hiring a private investigator to obtain your address and then the fun begins…You’re blocked from messaging me at this number,” the texts read, according to Moore’s screenshot.

In a plea to Airbnb, Moore tweeted: “Airbnb: Can you explain to me and everyone else why the host who sent me this message is still active on your platform? This person is clearly a threat and should not be allowed to host guests.” Moore spoke to local law enforcement, as well as Airbnb’s customer support and safety teams. After some back-and-forth, Moore announced that the host had officially been removed from Airbnb’s website.

“Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention and for your patience as we investigated,” read an email to Moore from Airbnb support. “We have concluded our investigation and can confirm for you that we have removed the host’s account and listing from Airbnb in accordance with our policies on bullying and harassment.”

Yes, a clear case of when NOT to use an investigator. But as we often see, investigations can lead to to big victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. And we know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

Know Even More

According to news sources, a bill that cleared California’s Senate Judiciary Committee recently would discourage secrecy about safety hazards discovered in litigation.
The Public Right to Know Act of 2022 would create a presumption that court orders may not conceal information about defective products or environmental hazards that pose a danger to the public. To overcome the presumption, a court must find that the public interest in disclosure is clearly outweighed by a specific and substantial need for secrecy. Trade secrets, settlement amounts and other specific categories of information would still be protected.
Any settlement agreements that bar disclosure of information about defective products and environmental hazards would be void as against public policy and could not be enforced. Supporters point to protective orders and settlements that allowed pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma to continue marketing OxyContin for more than a decade, despite evidence that the company knew that the drug was being misused.
Seven other states (South Carolina, Arkansas, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Montana and Virginia) have enacted similar presumptions favoring disclosure, according to Law360.
Business groups argue that the bill would discourage settlements and increase time and money spent on litigation.
Secret or not, the difference in this or any case comes down to reliable intelligence. As we often see, investigations can lead to to big victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. And we know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

According to news sources, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently indicted several people for working for the Chinese government to spy, harass, threaten and stalk Chinese dissidents legally living in the United States. There’s a name for this abuse. It’s called, “Transnational Repression.”

There are several intriguing things about this case, such as, one victim was at Tiananmen Square in 1989, escaped to the U.S., became a citizen, served in the U.S. military and is currently running for the U.S Congress.

But apparently, the “go-to” tactic of the Chinese government (MSS division) is to retain U.S. private investigators (PIs) to do their dirty work in the United States. In this case, the PI was contacted to take part in this “transnational repression” campaign by providing background information—and to stalk and intimidate the victims.

The MSS initially reached out to the PI for the following information on one particular Chinese victim legally living in the United States:

Home address and phone number

Family members

Company information

What is the business?

How many members and partners?

Identity of members and partners

Names of victim’s assistant and housekeeper

The Investigator agreed to provide the open-source information requested at a cost of $1500 per report to the DOJ. After the PI provided that open-source information to the Chinese, the Chinese agent then requested IRS tax returns for the victim running for Congress and asked if the PI had any contacts with the CIA or FBI. It was at that point that the PI notified the FBI to report being approached.

The MSS then urged the private investigator to either uncover derogatory information about the victim or create it if none existed, including beating the victim. One of the accused named in the complaint that the MSS also retained was a former Florida correctional officer.

In another case, a private investigator was retained by the Chinese State to assist in coercing a target to return to China. Similarly, the bottom line here is that the Chinese agents who retained the PI and the PI himself were acting as foreign agents in the U.S. without being registered with the U.S. Attorney General.

In the recent complaint announcement, the DOJ specifically called on private investigators to notify the FBI when contacted.

Alan Kohler, FBI Assistant Director, Counterintelligence Division, stated the following: “…I will also note the use of private investigators in many of these cases, I would urge all private investigators that have been asked to gather information on dissidents or have been approached by foreign governments to immediately report such requests to the FBI.

Investigations can be used for many purposes, but it’s clear that American private investigators need to be very careful when approached by Chinese representatives

When done by reputable firms and individuals, investigations can lead to big victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. That’s why the smartest attorneys and law firms across the country (like you) work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!

It’s a digital world and your next investigation may just depend on knowing how to navigate it effectively. The term “digital forensics” was originally used as a synonym for “computer forensics” but has expanded to cover investigation of all devices capable of storing digital data. Since the topic of digital forensics is a bit of a question mark with some attorneys, we sat down with legal investigations expert Tim Santoni, Santoni Worldwide, to talk about this area:
Who can effectively do it? Legally? 
Digital forensics (for all electronically stored information- ESI) should be done by professional who has the necessary certifications and technology. In order for the evidence to hold up in court, a licensed investigator or licensed investigations firm should be involved. The forensic tools used by certified forensics professionals allow for a defensible copy of the information to not be altered or tampered with.
When is it used in cases? 
It is often used in these situations:
  • Trade Secrets Theft- Look for emails and downloads of client lists. Look for someone plugging in large hard drives in the days before they quit.
  • Check chat logs and email messages to show that an employee was working for, consulting or leaking information to third parties.
  • Family Law: text messages tell the story of abuse and often contain photos of events
  • Cell Phone Forensics is often used to prove a timeline as to what happened, at exactly what time and where.
  • Digital Forensics is used to introduce admissible evidence or to refute digital evidence submitted by the other side.
Why is it important to know how to do it?
It’s critical to understand how to do it because more and more evidence is found in electronically stored information. You need to know where to look, how to retrieve it and then how to search for what you are looking for. Additionally you must know how to maintain a chain of custody with regard to the devices being examined so that the evidence will hold up in court.
What complementary skills and techniques are needed to support a digital forensic investigation?
Investigative skills, litigation experience, knowing how people like to hide information, etc. A digital forensic investigation requires that the investigator understands the case as well as the legal theories behind the case.
Digital (or analog) investigations can lead to to big victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. That’s why the smartest attorneys and law firms across the country (like you) work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!
In a case that will likely appear on a CSI show or police drama at some point, South Carolina law enforcement officials announced that they will exhume the remains of Gloria Satterfield, a former housekeeper for suspended attorney Alex Murdaugh.
According to news sources, Satterfield, who spent more than two decades as a housekeeper for the Murdaugh family, died in 2018 in what was described as a “trip and fall accident” at the Murdaugh home, according to attorney Eric Bland, who is representing her estate. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) said last year that it was opening a criminal investigation into Satterfield’s death, based upon a request from the Hampton County coroner that highlights inconsistencies in the ruling of Satterfield’s manner of death, as well as information gathered during SLED’s other ongoing investigations involving Murdaugh.
“The decedent’s death was not reported to the Coroner at the time, nor was an autopsy performed. On the death certificate the manner of death was ruled ‘Natural,’ which is inconsistent with injuries sustained in a trip and fall accident,” the coroner’s request to SLED said.
After Satterfield’s death, a $500,000 wrongful death claim was filed against Murdaugh on behalf of Satterfield’s estate, Bland said. According to him, the estate has not yet received any of the $500,000 owed as the result of a civil settlement in 2018. SLED says the exhumation process will take weeks, not days. The investigation is still active and ongoing.
The difference in this or any case comes down to reliable intelligence. As we often see, investigations can lead to to big victories in the courtroom or more favorable settlements. And we know that success or failure in the courtroom or during the settlement process depends on having the very best, most detailed information about a case. That’s why great attorneys and law firms across the country work with the worldwide team of Santoni Investigations who will make sure you know everything to maximize the settlement process or win your case in court!